


third time's a charm

by scullymuldrs



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Spider-Man: Homecoming Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-22
Updated: 2017-07-22
Packaged: 2018-12-05 11:21:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11577051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scullymuldrs/pseuds/scullymuldrs
Summary: post Homecoming, two times Tony doesn't ask Pepper the question and the one time he does





	third time's a charm

**Author's Note:**

> so this came out of a prompt i got on curious cat (i'm pepperony on there) and some inspiration after binge watching the office. obviously there are homecoming spoilers so read at your own risk. also thank you to alyssa and haley for helping me out and proof reading. enjoy!

"So..." Pepper started, leaning against the counter and pulling off her heels. She wiggled her toes, enjoying the freedom after being on her feet all day. It had been a long, stressful day, after Tony and Happy had managed to lose Peter and she had been forced to come up with a big announcement on the spot. Luckily, she had had some projects almost finished at Stark Industries that she was able to appease the press with. And Tony, thank god, hadn’t actually proposed during the press conference. But they hadn’t had time to discuss the whole situation yet and now that they were back together, Pepper didn’t want things to go left unsaid.

Tony flopped down the couch, loosening his tie. "Yes dear?" He responded casually, knowing very well what she was referring to but he wasn’t going to make it that easy.

"Are you going to give it to me or not?"

"Give you what honey?"

"You know what."

"Oh, do you mean the ring?" Which reminded him, he needed to find the box for it. Right now, it was just floating loosely in his pocket, and though he could easily pay for a replacement, he had put effort into choosing a ring that he thought Pepper would love.

Pepper rolled her eyes. "No Tony, I mean the Iron Man suit.” She sarcastically said, walking towards the couch to take a seat at the end and placing his feet in his lap. “Yes, I mean the ring!"

Tony raised his eyebrows at her in excitement. "Does this mean I can build you an Iron Woman suit?"

"Stay on topic. And no."

There was a pause and Pepper shot Tony a look after he didn’t answer her question. "So, are you giving me the ring or not?"

"Have I not proposed to you yet?” Pepper shook her head. “Well, that’s coming."

"Right now?" 

"Nope, that would be lame."

"So, when?"

"You'll just have to wait and see." Tony informed her, ideas already rushing into his mind.

She turned to study his face, cocking an eyebrow. "You're serious?"

Tony swung his legs off her lap and stood up. He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Yup. But don't worry, it'll be soon. You want wine?”

"Yes please.” Pepper responded, smiling at him. He poured them each a glass of wine and brought them back over to the couch, handing her a glass and taking a seat next to her. They adjusted themselves into a comfortable position, with Tony’s arm wrapped around her shoulder and Pepper pressed against him. “So, we've determined that you have an engagement ring. And that you're going to propose. But I can't know any of the details?"

Tony nodded and smirked. "That's right babe."

"I hate you."

"I love you too."

-

They’re sitting in a board meeting the first time it happened. Tony, as usual, was bored. He had thought that giving Pepper control of the company would have resulted in him not having to attend as many meetings yet he kept getting dragged to these things. Glancing down at his watch he groaned, which earned him a glare from Pepper who was seated right next to him. Grabbing his phone, Tony typed out a message.

‘im bored. how much longer do we have to stay?’

Pepper’s phone buzzed and after she had glanced at the message, she shot him a look over her shoulder before typing out her response.

‘Until it’s over. Stop distracting me and listen’

He gave half attempt to concentrate on the budget discussion (or at least he thought that’s what they were discussing) but then decided there was something much more entertaining that he could do. Leaning towards Pepper, he whispered in her ear. “Hey Pep, I’ve got something important to tell you.”

“Not now Tony.” Pepper hissed, trying to maintain her concentration on the presentation.

“Pepper, I’ve got a very important proposal for you.” 

Pepper’s eyes widened and she turned to look at him, a classic Tony smirk smeared across his face. “You wouldn’t.” 

“Virginia Potts, will you make me the happiest man and” 

Pepper cut him off before he could finish his sentence is a harsh whisper. “Anthony Edward Stark, if you propose to me during a meeting, I’m saying no.”

Tony looked at her in mock horror. “I was going to say, will you let me leave this meeting early?” This was met by a dirty look from Pepper, whose cheeks had started to turn pink. “You’re cute when you’re blushing.”

“Fine, you can leave.” She relented, turning her attention back to what was going on and trying to gain back her composure. Tony rose out of his chair and let his hand brush her shoulder as he made his way out of the room. Finally able to give her full attention, Pepper was attempting to catch up when her phone buzzed with a text from Tony.

‘dont worry potts, youll know when im proposing to you for real’

‘You’ll have to hope I don’t kill you before then’ She responded before her phone on silent and focusing all her energy on the finishing the damn budget meeting.

-

The second time it happened, he had not intended on another fake proposal. Really, despite what Pepper might say, he hadn’t planned it out. She just had bad timing. He had been in the workshop, working on one of the suits. He hadn’t even known that she had gotten home from work yet, so it wasn’t even his fault. A piece had fallen, Tony had crouched down to retrieve it and somehow had ended up crouched down on one knee. He picked up the piece he was looking for but a familiar voice called out while he was still down. “You’re not seriously proposing to me in the workshop while covered in grease, are you?”

His head popped up to see Pepper had entered the workshop, barefoot but still in her work outfit, meaning she had just gotten home. “Of course not honey, I didn’t even know you were home.”

Pepper shot him a look of disbelief. “I don’t need an expensive or fancy proposal but I would prefer it not to be in the workshop right after I’ve gotten home from work. Or during a board meeting.”

“I wasn’t proposing!” Tony insisted, coming to stand on his feet. “Trust me, your proposal is going to have a lot less grease involved. Plus I don’t even have your ring out right now.”

Pepper hummed in agreement. “Well I’m going to go get changed. You okay with Chinese for dinner?”

“Chinese is good. But come here a sec first.” Pepper stepped forward and Tony gave her a kiss. “Hi.”

“Hi yourself.” Pepper responded, smiling at him. “I’m going to get changed and then order dinner.” She began to leave but paused and turned back around to look at him. “Do I get any hints about the where and when of the proposal?”

Tony shook his head. “It’s a surprise babe. You’ll just have to wait and see.”

“I hate surprises.”

“You won’t hate this one. Trust me Potts, it’s going to blow your mind.”

-

In the end, his real proposal didn’t end up being what he had had planned. In fact, he hadn’t finished planning his proposal when he did end up proposing, for real. It was late at night and for once they had a quiet evening together, eating dinner on the couch and binge-watching Netflix. Pepper had thrown her hair up in a messy bun and removed her make up for the day, dressed simply in one of his t-shirts and a pair of grey cotton shorts. Being able to relax together, without any superhero or Stark Industries related interruptions, was a treat they rarely got to enjoy within the chaos of their lives.  
As the credits began to roll across the screen, Pepper got up to clear away their drink glasses and the bowl they shared popcorn in. Making her way into the kitchen, she called out for Friday to play Fleetwood Mac on shuffle. Tony got up and followed, watching as she hummed and danced around the kitchen while cleaning up. He didn’t think he had ever seen anything quite as beautiful or perfect as this.

“Marry me.” He blurted out, surprising himself and Pepper as well, who almost dropped the glasses she was holding. She carefully placed them down on the counter, before turning to look at him. “I was going to do a big, fancy proposal. I did have a plan in progress. But this, tonight, this is what I want. I just want you. You’ve seen me at my worst and you’re still here. So, Potts, will you marry me?”

Pepper was nearly running towards him before he’d even finished the question, a stampede of yeses pouring out of her mouth. She wrapped her arms around his neck and his hands landed on her hips as she kissed him. When she pulled back, they had identical grins spread across their faces. “I love you so much.” Pepper said, beaming at him.

“I love you too.”

“Aren’t you forgetting something though?” She asked, holding up her left hand and wriggling her ring finger.

“Ah, right. It’s the workshop.” Pepper cocked an eyebrow at him. “I had to keep it somewhere you wouldn’t find it! I’ll just be a sec.” He kissed her cheek before darting downstairs to retrieve the ring from it’s hiding place. Meanwhile Pepper returned to finish rinsing the glasses that she had abandoned in the kitchen. 

“Let’s do this properly.” A voice behind her said and she turned to find Tony on one knee, holding out a ring to her. “Virginia Potts, will you marry me?”

Pepper rolled her eyes but still had a large smile plastered to her face. “Yes, I’ll marry you.” She stepped towards him and held out her hand for him to slip the ring on. 

“You ready to be Mrs. Iron Man?” Tony teased, getting to his feet.

“Nope. But I am excited to be Tony Stark’s wife.”

“Even with all the crazy?” He asked, wrapping his arms around her waist. “You all in Potts?”

Pepper nodded. “I’ve been all in since I agreed to work for you. Now, I think we should properly celebrate our engagement.”

“I like the way you think.” He grinned at her, before kissing her and leading her to their bedroom to really celebrate their engagement.


End file.
